Thereinafter, when the term sock is mentioned, it should be understood that it refers also to stocking and vice-versa.
People with various physically limiting conditions have difficulty in dressing themselves unassisted by a second individual, limiting their ability to live independently; this at times contributes to lowered self-esteem and depression. Examples of limiting physical conditions that may contribute to such difficulties in proper and comfortable dressing include pregnancy, obesity, and diminished range of motion in the back, hip, knee, ankle, or foot; often caused by injury, disease, or surgery. One special problem for invalids, handicapped persons with amputated or disabled arms, people having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems or persons, which are recovering from a surgery, is the wearing of socks.
Many devices have been proposed having rigid rod(s) or handle(s) such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,061. These normally terminate in a U-shaped or short channel-shaped member which fits inside and stretches the elasticated edge of the stocking and can be released on pulling the rod away from the foot. The patent describes a device which includes a single goose-neck handle on one end of an elongated U-shaped rod and a semi-cylindrical caddy that is pivotally attached to the opposite end of the rod. Another U.S. Patent Application number 2003/0230605A1 discloses a device for allowing physically limited persons to put on or remove socks includes an elongated U-shaped sock caddy and two rigid elongated U-shaped pivotal handles. However, this does not provide a smooth action when pulling the sock around the heel. UK Patent Application No. 2316600A presents a sock aid which consists of a wire frame with an outer covering having a pulling strap and a strengthening strip. The user must place his foot in the entry to the heel end and pull the aid and sock assembly onto his foot by means of the strap. All the above inventions are unusable for an invalid or a handicapped person with amputated or disabled arms or for persons having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems.
Also there are very few devices like the one presented in U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,154 for assisting an individual in donning hosiery. When a user wants to slip one of their feet into an article of hosiery, he (or his assistant) needs to slip the sides of the article of hosiery over the rounded edges of the tops of the support leg members to create an expanded opening in the inverted article of hosiery. Since, a three legs hosiery support unit is not pivotally attached to the base member, it will be very difficult and may be impossible for a person having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems or for an invalid or a handicapped person with amputated or disabled arms to use this apparatus without someone else assistance. In order to slip a foot into the opening, which is slanted very much toward the horizontal axis, the handicapped person, if he lies down, can not remain in this position and must get up in order to wear his sock. If the user is an invalid or a handicapped person with amputated or disabled arms or persons having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems etc., he can not get up by himself, but only with the help of his assistant. Moreover, U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,154 presents the device that can easily slide aside while the wearing sock process since it lacks a ribbon or any other tool for providing counter force to the socks wearing action.
SU 694,190T also presents an apparatus for assisting invalids in stocking. But this apparatus has even more disadvantages, than the one described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,154. For the reason described above, it is almost impossible for an invalid or a handicapped person with amputated or disabled arms or persons having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems, to use this device, while the user lies down.
There is, therefore, a need for an apparatus which will aid in wearing socks or any other articles of hosiery, and which does not require the user bending, or pulling, or assistance from another person, or use of hands. Until now, none of the prior art provided a complete solution to the problem of the wearing of socks or any other article of hosiery, without any assistance of another, for the invalids or handicapped persons with amputated or disabled arms or for persons having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems or for persons with any other limiting physical condition.
The present invention seeks to overcome these difficulties by providing a stocking aid apparatus which is easy for use and simple in maintenance.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel stocking assisting apparatus and method having many of the advantages of the sock wearing devices mentioned heretofore and any novel features that result in a novel sock wearing apparatus which is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or implied by any of the prior art sock wearing devices, either alone or in any combination thereof.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus, which is of a durable and reliable construction.
It is another object of this invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which employs base member with a semi-cylindrical caddy for foot and leg placement that is pivotally attached to the base unit, which is provided for a pushing motion of the leg and not for a pulling motion of the user arm(s).
Moreover, it is another object of this invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which utilizes the elasticity of hosiery to provide easy fit for legs of different sizes.
It is also another object of this invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which is useful with socks of any size or type.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus, which may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed.
It is further object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which is susceptible of a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such socks wearing device economically available to the buying public.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which does not, in use, require the user to bend his back.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which provides in the apparatuses and methods of the prior art some of the advantages thereof, while simultaneously overcoming some of the disadvantages normally associated therewith.
Also, it is a further object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus that would aid a user in putting on socks while the user is an invalid, a handicapped person with amputated or disabled arms, a person having muscular dystrophy or tendons problems, a user that is recovering from a surgery or person with any other limiting physical condition.
Moreover, it is a further object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus which includes a sock wearing assembly for keeping a sock open for facilitating insertion of a foot into the sock.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a stocking assisting apparatus that would minimize the time and efforts it takes for invalid, or a handicapped person with amputated or disabled arms, or a person after a surgery, or an elderly user, or a user having any other physically limiting condition to put on socks.
These and further objects of the present invention will be more readily appreciated when considering the following disclosure and appended drawings.